Businesses take drastic measures to prevent rampant shoplifting and organized crime

Retail theft has ballooned over the past few years, causing a multi-billion dollar problem for retailers and forcing companies to take drastic measures to protect lost profits.

Many pharmacies, grocery stores and other retailers have shortened store hours or have been forced to close permanently to protect locked merchandise from shoplifters and to deter and loot thieves.

A Walgreens clerk told Fox Business last month why the ice cream coolers were secured with chains and locks, “it has to do with all the shoplifting.”

Crime weighs heavily on retailers across the country, costing businesses about $94.5 billion, the National Retail Federation reported last month. It has impacted businesses large and small, with Target reporting a 50% increase in store robberies last year, accounting for a whopping $400 million in losses.

NYC Walgreens store ice cream in chain freezer, candy on lockout in middle of shopping mall

Candy and ice cream at a Walgreens store in New York City on December 23, 2022 were locked or otherwise restricted. (Fox News Digital / Fox News)

A new report released by DelAaid, presented to Fox News Digital, found that more than 80% of retailers across the country saw an increase in theft-related incidents last year. Fifty-six percent of small retailers experienced theft in the past year, and 46 percent of small businesses reported increased costs due to shoplifting losses, the report found.

As Walmart CEO warns of crime wave’s impact on retail, seeds reveal how thieves are robbing stores.

In addition to installing additional personal security measures, such as cameras, security guards and team members dedicated to retail loss prevention, some stores are taking additional high-tech measures to protect their merchandise.

Many pharmacies, grocery stores and other retailers have shortened store hours or have been forced to close permanently to protect locked merchandise from shoplifters and to deter and loot thieves. (Fox News / Fox News)

Home repair chain Lowe’s has announced a crackdown on power tool theft, with a new process to ensure the items cannot be used once they are stolen. A new initiative called “Project Open” uses RFID chips and scanners to activate energy devices when they are purchased.

If a power device is stolen and not activated at checkout, it will not turn on.

“Over the past few years, theft — largely driven by organized gangs — has increased across the entire retail industry,” Lowe said in a December 2022 video announcing the initiative. “The net result is locked-down store experiences that penalize customers.”

“We think there are better ways to prevent theft than locking products.”

Home repair chain Lowe’s has announced a crackdown on power tool theft, with a new process to ensure the items cannot be used once they are stolen. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images/File/Getty Images)

Home Depot launched a similar initiative last year to protect its power tools.

But for many other retailers, locking up merchandise is the primary response to the rise in crime — especially in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York.

Walmart CEO Dave Massimillon said the theft is ‘higher than it’s ever been in history’

Indie CEO Joe Budano told Forbes last year, “Everybody is locking everything down. It’s a siege mentality.” Indime, a San Diego-based company that sells security devices such as assist buttons that customers hit when employees need to get something out of a locked cabinet, Budano says business is up 40% in the past year.

At some pharmacies and big-box stores, customers have seen everything from candy to mascara to nasal sprays under lock and key in recent months, sparking outrage.

Items locked to prevent theft at a Target store in New York City. (Linsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/File/Getty Images)

Roger Evans of Arizona told Insider why he stopped shopping at Walgreens and CVS to buy razors: “I always had a hard time getting an employee to come open them. “Drug stores are chronically short of supplies.”

While the security helps prevent theft, critics say it could lose customers because of the extra wait time for a store clerk to come in and open a cabinet or product. Budano estimates that retailers often see a 15 to 25 percent drop in sales as customers refuse to buy locked-down items and instead choose to shop online or at another store.

Some smaller stores that sell high-end goods like jewelry have moved to be by appointment only.

Earlier this month, a jewelry store in New York City was targeted by masked burglars and thieves who stole up to $2 million worth of gems in less than a minute.

The Brooklyn jewelry store is open by appointment only until additional security measures are installed. It’s a tactic Madison Avenue stores on the Upper East Side used last year to combat daytime shoplifters, the New York Post reported in April.

San Francisco police raided retail stores and pharmacies to suppress rampant shopping.

Small businesses that don’t have the funds of national chains are getting more creative to protect their inventory.

A Houston, Texas, bar owner told Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” this month that he sleeps inside the restaurant to protect against burglaries.

“This is a huge issue in our city right now,” said Raul Jacobo, owner of Cobo’s BBQ. Co-host Carley Shimkus. If I was upset… based on these robberies, I could only imagine how families would feel if they actually lost a loved one because some criminals were out on the streets.

Embold said SF shoplifters are easy to steal, citing lax security as the store takes drastic action.

“It’s a very frustrating situation….we have no choice but to sleep in our facilities to protect our belongings,” he added.

In Philadelphia, a gas station owner faced off with private security personnel wearing Kevlar vests and armed with AR-15s or assault rifles.

Last year, San Francisco police busted popular retailers like Walgreens, Old Navy, Target, Whole Foods, CVS and Macy’s to catch shoplifters and other retail thieves.

Shoplifting and organized retail theft are unlikely to disappear from stores this year, experts say.

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The study, published by DealAid, found that organized retail crime increased by 26.5% last year, but the majority of retailers, around 68%, do not have departments in place to prevent organized retail crime, such as break-ins and hold-ups.